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Bear at door

It is late September.
Ken Brassington takes
a package to a house
in Port Coquitlam.

Ken is a postal worker.
He stops his van.
Then he sees something.
But he does not get out.
He drives his van closer.
The thing does not move.

What’s the problem?He cannot leave
the package at the house.
Who will believe him?
He takes a picture.
He must give a reason.
Ken thinks for a minute.
Then he writes, “Bear at door.”

He goes back to the post office
with the note and the package!
Brassington said later,
“I thought it was a good excuse.”

A good excuseThe homeowner picks up his mail.
He sees a message in his box.
It says, “Bear at door”!
He laughs and takes a picture
of the message.
He posts it on Twitter.
His Twitter name is @IamFane.

Many people read the tweet.
They send it to their friends.

This photo was posted on Twitter by @IamFane.

Happy endingPostal worker Ken Brassington
became famous for a short time.
He has a copy of
his postal delivery slip.
“I might frame it.
Keep it around to talk about,
years down the road.”

Ken and the notice

Bear facts
In 2013, Coquitlam, B.C., had
the most reported black bear sightings
in the province,
with 1,281 reports.

Bears in Coquitlam, B.C.Photograph by Ian Lindsay/The Vancouver Sun

Blueberries and garbageMany bears come for garbage.
Many others come to eat blueberries.
More than 20 years ago
there were no blueberry farms.
Now there are 600 acres
of blueberries in Coquitlam.

Black bearsBears come into contact with people in B.C.
The bears live in the forests of B.C.
They often live at the forest edge
near towns or farms.
Now many, many black bears are
not afraid of people.

A problem bear is a dead bearThese bears often wander
into areas where people live.
The bears are looking for
human food or garbage.

From 1992 to 1996,
wildlife officers shot over 4,000 bears.
These animals were dangerous to people.
Some people allow these visiting bears
to get into their garbage or other food.
These people help
create a “problem bear”.